Local hospitals are preparing for potential system pressures as the strike deadline for Essex-Windsor paramedics nears. CUPE Local 2974, representing about 340 paramedics, has set a strike deadline for midnight on Monday, Oct. 5. President and CEO of Windsor Regional Hospital and Erie Shores HealthCare, Kristin Kennedy, says the region’s hospitals and EMS are already working together on contingency plans. She says a major focus will be aiming to reduce the amount of time paramedics spend waiting to offload patients into hospital care. If a deal is not reached, this would be the first strike by EMS in Windsor-Essex history. She says they are preparing as that deadline approaches. “I do have a strong commitment to ensuring that we are reducing how long a patient is waiting on a stretcher to be offloaded from an EMS, recognizing that there may be some system pressures across Windsor-Essex, but the team is aware.” Kennedy says the hospitals are considering measures to address any needs that may come up. “Working on contingency plans, potential up-staffing for our nurses as well as our physicians as well, and to ensure that both Erie Shores Healthcare and Windsor Regional Hospital that we are supporting and offloading as readily as we can to ensure that EMS are back on the road.” According to Kenney, the priority will remain protecting patients and the community. “There are always impeding factors in the ER with volumes, how many EMS show up at one time is always a contributing factor and what our bed flow is on the inpatient units as well. And so it’s navigating all of that every day.” Kennedy says it’s normal business for the hospital at this time. The union has been without a collective agreement since conciliation ended in May. The Ontario Labour Relations Board previously approved a 20 per cent reduction of staff should a strike occur.
